A Never Ending Story
by Rainypanda
Summary: An adventure of what happens after the main game. Might contain spoilers. The title is symbolic. See if you can figure out what it means. Contains pairings.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Legendia or any of the characters. All belong to Namco.

Chapter 1

After defeating Schwartz, the gang returned to Werites Beacon.

"Man, I'm beat! I can't believe with Nessy's power we were able to defeat Schwartz!" Norma said.

"Nerifes knew that when it entrusted us with it's power, we weren't going to lose" Senel said.

"We had to fight to protect our happiness" Shirley said.

"And we were sure we could protect it with the sacred eres the Great Nerifes gave us!" Moses said.

"Wow Moses… you actually said something that wasn't totally stupid" Jay said.

"Hey! Why you!"

"That's enough you two. You should be glad we're alive and all here now. We fought hard and now we deserve to rest" Will said.

"Yea, Teach is right…*yawn* I'm so tired I could fall asleep here. And that reminds me…I sorta couldn't pay for my room anymore because some people wouldn't take a discount. So… do you think I can crash with someone tonight?" Norma said.

They fell silent for a moment.

"Come on, anybody! Please! What about you, C?"

"…fine"

"Thanks so much C! I knew I could count on you!"

Then Harriet came running up to see them.

"Dad, you're back! I'm so glad! Will you please come home?"

"Ah, very well, we should all be heading back now" Will said.

And so they all went to their homes for the night. The two girls arrived at Chloe's room and Norma jumped onto the bed.

"I'm so glad you let me stay here tonight…Now we can talk about stuff."

"Stuff?"

"Yea stuff…you know, like Senny."

"Norma…"

"Come on, you know you like him, just tell him already!"

"But…I can't win…the type of girl he likes is one that he has to protect."

"Ohhh, so you're jealous of Shirl?"

Chloe was silent.

"Heck, anyone would be…that still doesn't mean you should give up!"

"When I was standing there with him in the forest, the only one who felt anything was me."

"You don't know that, maybe deep deep down he does have feelings for you."

Chloe didn't respond.

"Come on C! There's still hope. And with that said, I'm going to sleep…Night C!"

She fell asleep in an instant.

"Maybe…" Chloe whispered.

With that on her mind, Chloe went to sleep.

I knowsss tis too short! Well each chapter gets longer as it goes on, I wrote it that way. More is on the way! =)


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I own neither Tales of Legendia nor any of the characters. All belongs to Namco.

Chapter 2

Norma yawned as she woke up.

"Good Morning C!"

But she was surprised to find that Chloe wasn't there.

"C? Oh, I guess you're already at the carnival."

Norma rushed out of the room and out of the inn.

"Hey Hattie, what are you doing here?"

"I was waiting for you, so we could walk to the carnival together!" Harriet said.

"Oh Hattie, you're like my little sister I never had! Let's go!"

So they started walking toward the town circle, now occupied by the carnival. They had just passed Will's house when Norma and Harriet heard someone behind them. Harriet looked back.

"Hello Senel, are you going to the carnival too?" Harriet said.

"Yea, Shirley wants me to."

"Well, we're all going to the same place, let's go together" Norma said.

They walked until they reached the long awaited carnival.

"Wow! Look at all the cool rides, and the rollercoaster, and the Ferris wheel, and"—Norma started.

"Let's go get some cotton candy first!" Harriet interrupted.

"Okay. You coming Senny?" Norma asked.

"I think I'm going on the rollercoaster first."

Senel made his way over to the large, towering rollercoaster, 'The Dragon Twister' and saw Moses and Jay waiting in line right in front of him.

"Hey guys, you going on the 'Twister' too?"

"Hey Senel! Yea, we're going on…that is, if the little chicken here can handle it!" Moses said.

"I'm not a chicken! I…I just don't like roller coasters! That's all!" Jay said.

"Mhmmm, sure! Ain't no way I'm lettin' you back out now! It's our turn!"

Moses, Jay, and Senel were strapped into the seats. The Twister took them up and through twists and turns at rapid speed.

"Moses, you! You are going to pay for this, you stupid bandit!"

In a minute the car came to a stop.

"See, wasn't that fun, Jay?"

"Hmph. Not in the least."

"I'm heading over to the Ferris wheel now. See you later!" Senel said.

When he got there, he saw Will, Harriet, Shirley and Norma standing nearby.

"Senel!" Shirley said.

"So you made it" Will greeted.

"Yea."

"Daddy…I want to ride the Ferris wheel now!" Harriet pouted.

Harriet and Will stepped inside. The others watched as the wheel went up and up until it started to slowly spin down.

"Senel, let's go on our favorite ride!" Shirley said as they walked away from the Ferris wheel.

"Want some cotton candy, Senny?"

"Sure."

"Senel!?" Shirley urged.

"Okay, lead the way."

"Well, you two go have some fun, I'm going to be at the game booths winning one of those huge stuffed animals!" Norma exclaimed.

"Good luck with that!" Senel and Shirley said in unison as they started to walk away.

They made their way through the crowds of people to the tunnel of love. They approached the stand to find a 'Out of Order' sign.

"What's this?" Shirley asked.

"It must've broke down" Senel replied.

Shirley had a look on her face that looked as if she were going to cry. But to his surprise, she didn't.

"Oh well, it's alright…" Shirley muttered.

"Sorry Shirley."

"Hey, let's go back to Norma and see if she won something!" Shirley suggested.

"Okay."

So they hurried to find Norma.

"Ohh, there she is!" Shirley pointed out.

She spotted Norma sitting on a bench stuffing her mouth with cotton candy. Sitting beside her was a big blue spotted kitten plushie.

"You won?" Senel said.

"It was a piece of cake! Only, I wanted the yellow one, but this is the only one they had left."

"It's so cute!" Shirley said.

Just then Moses, Jay, Will, and Harriet came up to Norma.

"Bubbles! You won! Yahoo!"

"Hattie, Teach, JJ, Red! Look how cute b-cat is!"

"It's absolutely adorable! Just like you, Bubbles!" Moses said.

"Congratulations" Will said.

"Now that everyone's here, I have an announcement to make…As soon as they start the singing rally, I'm going to be the first one up singing karaoke!" Norma shouted.

Chapter 3 is comming soon! So stay tuned! =)


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: All of Tales of Legendia's characters plus the game Tales of Legendia all belong to Namco.

Chapter 3

Everyone stood there, shocked. Moses had his mouth wide open. Shirley and Harriet's eyes grew the size of 10-karat glittering diamonds.

"That's great, Bubbles!"

"Who's hosting this singing rally?" Will asked.

"The bbs."

"Of course. They take their own singing way too seriously" Senel said.

"I'm gonna be a star!" Norma said.

"Fer sure, Bubbles!"

"Don't fuel the fire, you stupid bandit!"

"It all starts in 15 minutes! You're all gonna watch me, right?" Norma said.

"Yes!" Chimed Shirley and Harriet.

"You bet!" Moses replied.

"Sure" said Will and Senel.

"Why not?" Jay added.

"Yay! You guys are the best! This is gonna be super fun! …I wonder what song I'm going to sing?"

A spooky wind crept through. They were silent as they watched the fireworks display light up the twilight sky.

"Oh yea, did any of you see C today? I haven't seen her since last night…I thought she was at the carnival, but after a few hours of not seeing her, I realized she must not be here" Norma asked.

"Now that you mention it, I haven't seen her today" Will said.

"Me either" Shirley and Moses replied in unison.

"I don't believe I have" Jay said.

Harriet shook her head.

"I haven't either" Senel said.

"Hmm…I guess she doesn't like carnivals?" Norma said.

"Someone should go find her…just to make sure she's okay" Shirley suggested.

"Hello!? But you're going to miss me singing!"

"I'll go" Senel volunteered.

"I'll come with you" Shirley requested.

"Shirl! Senny! Hey! What about me! Did you already forget about the future star here!?"

"Why don't you just stay here and listen to her sing?" Senel said.

"But I'm worried about her. I want to see what's wrong with her" Shirley insisted.

"Thanks, but I can handle it, Shirley. I'll be back soon."

He left the carnival and first checked at Madam Mussette's house.

"Mussette?"

"Greetings Senel, how may I help you?"

"Have you by any chance, seen Chloe Valens today?"

"No. Sorry, I don't believe I have."

"Okay, thanks."

He then headed up to the graveyard and looked around. Nothing but tombstones here. Then he walked all through the city again. From Mussette's house to the drawbridge.

_Chloe, where are you? Did you leave the city? Did you leave the Legacy? You're my friend, and I'm going to find you. Senel thought._

After a few more minutes of looking, the silver haired marine returned to the carnival. He saw Norma on a rainbow decorated wooden platform singing 'My Raspberry Heart'.

_She's not so bad after all._

"You go, Bubbles!"

People were standing around the stage screaming, "Norma! Norma! Norma!"

Shirley came up to him before he noticed her.

"Did you find her?"

He shook his head.

"I searched everywhere. She's not anywhere in the city."

"Well, do you think she left the Legacy?"

"No! She wouldn't leave without telling us first, would she?"

Shirley looked away for a minute before meeting his eyes again.

"You can't give up on her, Senel!"

"S-Shirley? I would never…"

"We'll be here if you…find her" Shirley said.

"Okay."

Then he walked to the lighthouse.

_I guess I'll look in here next._

He pushed the switch to the elevator and it took him down. Down into the Quiet Lands. He went out into the field and searched in all the elemental monuments. First ice, then earth, then fire, and lastly, thunder. He didn't even come across Giet. Senel then strolled over to the coast on the western side of the continent. The camp the Oresoren set up was still here.

_Chloe! There you are!_

He saw her sitting at the edge of the ocean. He quietly walked up and sat down beside her.

"Chloe, is everything alright?"

The female knight was resting her head on top of her knees and didn't look up.

"Chloe?"

"Coolidge…what are you doing here?"

"You weren't at the carnival, so I went looking for you."

Chloe was silent.

"What's wrong?"

She didn't answer.

"Chloe, everyone's worried about you. I'm worried about you! And if you think nobody's going to notice you've disappeared, you're wrong! I care about you too much to allow that to happen. I won't abandon a friend!"

She raised her head and looked at Senel. He saw tears streaming down her cheeks.

"It-it's nothing."

"I don't believe that. And I'm not leaving until you tell me!"

"Coolidge…don't waste your time. I'm not worth it."

He gasped a little.

"…I…I…I love you…"

That rendered him silent. She turned away and looked back at the ground.

"But you're meant to be with Shirley, so it doesn't matter anyway…"

"I really don't think that because I don't really like her…that way" He started.

"When I first met Shirley, I was in love with Stella. But even when Stella died…I never really had any feelings for Shirley. I just couldn't tell her, because I felt like that would be rejecting my job to take care of her, as Stella's last wish. And…I didn't want to break her heart. But even before I knew Stella wasn't dead…I had you as a friend, and…"

Chloe turned to face him.

"And I realized…you're the only one I feel that way about."

They both blushed.

"Coolidge…"

She lay her head down on his shoulder.

"Thank you…for coming."

Awwwwzzz! This is only the beginning people! Chapter 4 isn't far away!! =D


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Tales of Legendia and all of its awesome characters belong to a company called Namco.

Chapter 4

An hour must have passed, and it was now raining. Not hard, but not too light either.

"Chloe…are you okay?"

"I don't know how to answer that. But…the rain…how nice."

"…Y-yea…I didn't know it rains down here."

After another moment of sitting in the cold dark rain, the marine said, "Why don't we go back to the carnival? Everyone's been worrying about you."

Chloe nodded and they walked back to the elevator and out of the Quiet Lands. When they exited the lighthouse, she could see the fireworks sparkling in all the colors of the rainbow. There seemed to be no end to them lighting up the night sky. When they made it over to the carnival, Norma noticed them first and ran up to them.

"Senny! C! You missed my singing! How could you be so heartless?! You're so mean, Senny! I know it didn't take you **that** long to find her! What happened?"

"What do you mean?" Senel answered.

She leaned up and whispered in Chloe's ear, "Did you and Senny heat things up?"

"Norma!"

And before she got the chance to say any more, Shirley ran over, followed by Moses, Jay, Harriet and Will.

"Senel! You're back…and C…" Shirley greeted.

"I'm glad to see everyone's okay" Will said.

"Yea, Yea, Yea! I'm **soo **tired! Why don't we call it a day? I mean, it is pretty late," Norma said.

"I agree," Moses added.

So they started home. After Moses went back to his camp, Jay to his house, and Will and Harriet went home, it was just down to the four of them.

"So I can crash with you again tonight, right, C?"

"Yea."

"You know, C, I haven't noticed before, but you know what? You're actually pretty sexy in that outfit. You should wear it more often. It's a lot better than your battle uniform" Norma blurted out.

"W-what do you mean?"

"You know just how to make your chest look good while wearing all black! This must be a real treat for you, Senny!"

"Senel!?!" Shirley shouted.

"Hey, I didn't have anything to do with this!" Senel said.

"Hah! Even I could tell you were looking at C!

"Senel!?!?!"

"Shirley, I don't know what she's talking about! It's"—

Suddenly Shirley slapped Senel hard across the face, and then turned and slapped Norma and Chloe even harder.

"I'm…I'm going now…goodnight!" The Merines angrily stomped away.

"Ow! Shirl's slaps really hurt!"

She looked up to find Senel and Chloe staring at her with an angry look.

"Hey, don't look at me like that! I can't ignore what I see!"

The female iron eren smacked Norma on the head. The silver haired marine smacked the treasure hunter a second time, a little harder than the first smack.

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Not you guys too! What was that for?! You're gonna give me brain damage! Talk about an angry couple attack!"

A moment later Senel said, "Goodnight."

He started home.

"Come on, Norma" Chloe said.

"So now tell me C, did anything happen?!"

"Go to sleep!"

"Aww, why do you always have to be miss goody goody all the time?"

She saw that Chloe was already asleep and gave up for now.

"Fine…you're no fun," Norma mumbled as she drifted into dreamland.

In the morning the female knight was still sleeping when Norma awoke.

"C, wake up!"

Chloe didn't move. She was obviously deep in slumber.

"Okay, you asked for it."

Norma began messing up her hair.

"Haha C! You're in for a rude awakening!"

She hurried outside and made her way up to the graveyard. There, she stopped in front of Sven's grave. Then Chloe woke up. She checked her reflection in the mirror like she always does every morning, and saw her messed up hairdo.

"Norma!"

Nevertheless, she fixed her hair back to how she normally wears it, and set out into the blazing sunlight. The breeze was refreshing as it blew through.

_I guess I'll check out what's going on at the Fountain Plaza._

She was almost there when the Bantam Bouncers appeared in front of her.

"Hello sister! You look down. Would you like us to sing for you?" Isabella asked.

"Yes, Isabella, we will help this troubled soul in the name of love!" Curtis exclaimed.

"No thanks!"

"Okay then! If you're sure, suit yourself!" Isabella said.

"Off we go, Isabella! To keep the city safe!"

As quickly as they had appeared, they were gone. Chloe let out a silent sigh of relief and approached the Fountain Plaza.

_Coolidge? What's he doing here?_

She walked over to him.

"Hello Coolidge!"

"Hey Chloe! What's up?"

"I was about to ask you the same question."

"Nothing really…"

Just then, out of nowhere, the sky growled a huge roar of thunder that bellowed the coming of a storm.

"Aahh!" Chloe screamed.

She sprinted over to Senel and held on to him as another roar shook the ground.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

"…I think so. It was just so sudden…"

A bright, illuminating flash of lightning lit up the entire sky for a second. The rain followed. It poured down. Ten minutes later the sun emerged back into view and most of the rain ceased.

"Look! A rainbow!" The marine pointed out.

Sure enough, a faint rainbow was painted across the cloudy sky.

"I haven't seen one in such a long time…"

"I almost forgot. At seven, Norma wants everyone to meet at Will's house." Senel said.

"What does she have planned?"

"I don't know. She said it was a surprise."

"I wonder what it could be?" The female knight pondered.

"I guess we'll have to find out. See you at seven." He said as he walked off.

Chloe went back to her room and took a nap. When she woke up, she checked the clock. A little before seven.

Time to go…

The walk to Will's house was short, and before she knew it, here she was. She entered to find the whole gang standing around the table waiting for something to happen.

"There you are, C! Now that everyone's here, I'll tell you what this is all about. We're going to play a **game**!" Norma declared.

Uh ohzzz…cliffhanger! what could it be??? Stay tuned. The next chapter will be up a.s.a.p!


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Namco owns Tales of Legendia plus all of the Tales of Legendia characters.

Chapter 5

"What kind of game?" Jay asked.

"I'm glad you asked! You've all heard of this game before. We're going to play Spin The Bottle!" Norma announced.

"Like hell! I ain't playin' that, Bubbles!"

"Norma!" Shirley protested.

"I hate to admit it, but I agree with the idiot on this one" Jay said.

"Moses is right" Senel said.

"I agree" Chloe said.

"But guys! This is going to be fun!"

"Norma, I don't think that playing that game is such a good idea" Will stated.

"Teach don't worry! You won't be playing! I mean, come on! You're too old!"

"*Sigh* Alright, fine. Play your game. I'll be up in my room if you need me."

"Alright, now we need to lay down some ground rules. One, if the bottle stops on someone of the same gender, there'll be a re-spin. Unless of course, you **want** to go that way" Norma started.

She darted her eyes deliberately from Moses to Jay, and back again.

"You're not **implying** something, Norma, are you?" Jay inquired.

She giggled.

"Two, when the bottle stops, you get the choice of kissing right here, or Seven Minutes In Heaven, where I'll lock you in that closet over there for approximately seven minutes. And three, no backing down from **any** person! Whoever it lands on, you **have** to go through with it! No getting out of it! Any questions?"

"Norma, we're not playing!" Chloe said

"We already said we ain't!"

"Oh come on! Please?! Pretty please?? We've never had any fun like this, just the six of us! Come on guys!"

"No!" Jay said.

"Please! This is the only thing I've ever wanted, besides the Everlight, this badly! Pretty pretty pretty please?? With sugar and a cherry and sprinkles on top?"

"Alright, alright! You done got me, Bubbles!"

"Fine…" Uttered Senel, Jay and Chloe.

"Shirl?"

"I guess…"

"You guys are the best! Just let me go get a bottle!"

She grabbed one from the kitchen table and sat back down.

"Okay! Now everyone, form a circle!" Norma commanded.

They did, and Norma put the bottle in the center.

"Let's spin to see who gets to go first!" The treasure hunter grinned.

She set it spinning. It landed on Moses.

"You're first Red!"

"Alright. Let's take this baby for a spin!"

He spun it, and it started to stop. Directly facing Jay.

"Re-spin it, you fool!" Jay spat.

"That's what I'm doin'!"

It then landed on Norma.

"Bubbles!"

"What do you want?" The bubbly girl asked.

"I want my kiss right now!"

Moses leaned over and kissed Norma.

"Eww Red! Your breath stinks! Really bad!"

"And that's a surprise?" Jay taunted.

"Hey!"

"Just spin it so we know who's going next, Red!"

He spun it, and it pointed to Norma again.

"Ooh, my turn!"

She let it rip, spinning. It faced Jay this time.

"Oh great…" He started.

"JJ, I guess I'll just…kiss you!"

"Just get it over with."

She went over and kissed Jay on the cheek, then sat back down.

"Who gets to go next?" Norma wondered.

She started it spinning again. It pointed to Senel this time.

"Your turn, Senny!"

"Yea. Alright, here goes."

And he spun it. The bottle singled out Moses.

"Are you going for it, Senny?"

"Hell no! I'll spin it again."

It finally stopped…On Chloe. The female iron eren gasped.

"Senny, Senny, Senny…What will it be?"

"I kinda wanna know, myself!" Moses added.

Shirley gasped.

"Senel!"

"What's the matter Shirl?"

"Ummm…"

"I'll take the…seven minutes in heaven."

"Ooh! Senny's taking a walk on the wild side!"

"S-Senel!! How could you?!" Shirley cried.

"He has to do it Shirl. And don't worry; it's only for seven mintues. That closet is so small, they won't even be able to move!"

Norma led Senel and Chloe to the closet. She closed the door and locked them in.

"Alright Senny! Your Seven Minutes In Heaven starts now!"

Chloe could hear Norma walking away from the door. Luckily it seemed the closet was empty, but the fact that there was no light made up for it. There was no space at all. Norma wasn't joking. Chloe could feel him pressed up against her.

"Coolidge, move!"

"I can't!"

"Just move your hands!"

He felt his knuckles pressed into something like cushions. Cushions with a very fast heartbeat.

"Oh, sorry! I didn't mean…"

She tried the door. It didn't budge.

"Norma…"

"Chloe, I'm so sorry. I didn't know it would be like this."

"I'm not angry at you. Let's just get through this."

He nodded.

"Thanks."

The minutes slowly ticked by until finally, they heard the door click. Senel opened it and walked out, followed by Chloe. Norma was standing right in front of them with an evil grin on her face.

"So…what'd you do, Senny?"

"Nothing" He said as calmly as possible.

"Aww come on! Don't give me that! C?"

No words came from Chloe.

"Let's just go on," The silver haired iron eren said.

"But we can't! Shirley left!" Moses said.

"Shirley? Where did she go?" Senel asked.

"I don't know. She just left a couple minutes ago" The bandit continued.

"Okay, I'll be back!" The marine said as he slipped out of Will's house.

He didn't have to look far. At the drawbridge, he saw the Merines with her head in her hands.

"Shirley?"

"S-S-Senel! H-how could you?!"

Her tears were dripping off her hands.

"Shirley, it was just a game. I couldn't back out…"

"But why did you look so nonchalant about it?!"

"…Shirley…There's something you need to know…I don't really feel that way about you…"

She let out a gasp.

"Senel…I thought we were…how could you?! And now she…"

"Shirley…I'm so…so sorry."

"I thought…you…loved me…"

"I do Shirley…as a sister."

"B-but, wasn't there any…more, Senel?"

"No. You have to know the truth. I'm sorry Shirley."

Then she started crying harder.

"All this t-time! I'm leaving!!"

She took off running and stopped a ways ahead and glanced back at her silver haired brother.

"And I'm never coming back!"

She ran on ahead until she was a long way from Werites Beacon. And she kept going till she disappeared from view entirely. Senel couldn't move. He was frozen.

"What have I done? Shirley…Please, forgive me."

He made his way back to Will's house. They were all waiting for him to talk when he arrived.

"I should be heading home," Senel announced.

"But Senny, did you find Shirl? Where is she? Why are you going home? We're in the middle of game here!"

"The game's over" Jay said as walked out the door.

"He's right, Bubbles!"

"But…why?!" Norma protested.

"I'll be going as well," Chloe said.

"You guys can't do this! You can't just quit! And what about Shirl?! Why isn't anyone answering me?!" The yellow clad treasure hunter slumped down as she realized they were long gone.

"Guys…"

Then she lay down on the couch.

"I guess I'll just…go to sleep here…tonight."

Whew! My hands hurt from typing! Enjoy! Next chapter is a-coming!


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Namco owns all the characters in Tales of Legendia as well as the game, Tales of Legendia.

Chapter 6

Chloe awoke to the sun shining on her. She was expecting to hear Norma say, "Hey, you're awake C! Come on, let's go!" But Norma wasn't here. Norma had just headed out of the city, into the Fallingwater, when she spotted Senel standing on the bridge.

"Hey! There you are, Senny! Just the man I wanted to talk to! I need to ask you about Shirl. What happened to her? I've looked everywhere for her! It's like she's gone or something!"

"Yea…Shirley left."

"Left?! What do you mean she left?! How can you say that so calmly?!"

"Last night she ran away, and told me she wasn't coming back. She seemed pretty serious about it."

"But why? We all love Shirl! She's our friend. Could she be jealous?"

"I suppose…that's why she ran away."

"Poor Shirl…We should go find her, right?"

"…No. I think we need to give her some time. And also, she didn't look like she wanted us to go after her."

"Where do you think she went?"

"I don't know."

"I guess there's nothing we can do, huh, Senny?"

He was silent.

"It must be so hard on you, Senny…"

"What do you mean?"

"All the girls are after you!"

Before he could say anything, they heard, "Coolidge!" Norma turned around.

"Example A" The treasure hunter whispered toward the marine, low enough so that only he could hear it.

"Hey C! What's up?"

"I was wondering what happened to Shirley."

"She ran away last night," Senel answered.

"She ran away because she got really jealous of you, C!"

"Shut up Norma!" The blue clad girl said.

"Well, it's true…" Norma chimed.

"Where did she go?"

"I don't know…all she said was, she wasn't coming back."

"And Senny says we shouldn't even go look for her."

"For some reason…I get a bad feeling about that…" He said.

"Yea…" The swordswoman agreed.

"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Norma inquired.

"Don't worry, it's probably nothing" He said.

"Shouldn't we inform Teach, Red, and JJ that Shirl left?"

"Leave it to me" Senel said.

He started off back to town. After a while, Chloe arrived back in town and went back to her room.

_I better get a nap in before Norma comes._

Norma came in around eight that night.

"C, you don't mind if I crash here another night, do you?"

Then she noticed Chloe was already asleep.

"Guess not."

She plopped on the trundle.

"Sweet dreams C!"

The next morning Moses and Csaba were heading out for some training in the field when they saw a girl rush into the city. She sped over the drawbridge and stopped in front of them.

"Well, hello little miss!" Moses greeted.

She was a strange looking girl, mostly because of her clothes. And her hair was blond and in pigtails.

"Hello. You must be Moses. One of Senel's friends. Could you tell him something? Something urgent?" The strange girl said.

"Hey, wait, you're Thyra! One of them Radiant!"

"Yes, I am. Now, will you tell him?"

"Tell him what?"

"This is urgent. Shirley is in great danger and needs your help right now! If you don't arrive soon at the Altar Of The Sea, she might…she might…die…"

"Shirley? Nobody messes with my family! We'll be right there!"

"Thank you. You're her only hope…"

She quickly ran off. Back to wherever she came from.

"You hear that, Csaba? Sorry, but I gotta tell the others. Maybe some other day."

"Very well" Csaba said.

Moses walked up and went into Senel's house. He saw Norma, Chloe, Will, Jay and Senel all discussing something.

"Hey guys! That girl named Thyra just came by and said Shirley's in trouble!"

"Shirl?!"

"Where is she?" Will asked.

"She said The Altar Of The Sea…I think."

"Alright, let's go!" Jay said.

"Shirley…" Senel muttered.

They headed out of town and into the field. They used the duct to go to The Altar Of The Sea. They went all through the cave till they reached the top, where the altar stood surrounded by the vast ocean.

"There she is!" Will announced.

"Whoa! She's that Merines thing again!" Moses said.

Shirley was standing on the altar circle, and a bright red light was emanating from her. Thyra was standing beside her.

"So you've come," Thyra said.

"What's the trouble, Shirl?"

"There is no trouble. I've done this of my own free will. I have become the perfect Merines again. But this time, I have now fully become one with Nerifes. I am now all powerful!"

"Shirley, but why?" Senel asked.

"Funny you should ask. You of all people…you betrayed me, Senel. And now I'm going to destroy you! All of you! By the power of Nerifes!"

"What?!" Moses shouted.

"You can't be serious Shirl!"

"You orerines are going to get what you deserve! Nerifes desires a world in which there are no orerines!" Thyra stated.

"That's not what Nerifes desires!" The marine argued.

"Nerifes and the Merines are connected, so whatever the Merines desires, that is now what Nerifes desires!"

"Enough talking. It is now time for all of you to perish!" Shirley cried.

She released some of her power as a barrier and shot it at them. Chloe and Senel barley managed to get out of the way. The others were now trapped in a barrier that sealed their eres, and made it useless to escape.

"Dammit! They're trapped!" The silver haired iron eren said.

"You can no longer rely on the help of your friends. What's this? Chloe, you dodged my barrier?! That's fine. I wanted to kill you first!"

She then attacked the swordswoman by releasing a huge blast of purple energy. She tried to dodge it, but it was too fast. It slammed into her, and she fell down hard. Senel ran over to her.

"Chloe!"

"I…I'm fine…"

He could tell she was badly hurt.

"Not dead? Then how about another one?!"

Senel stood in front of Chloe, protecting her.

"I won't let you kill her!"

"Rushing to your own death? Fine, then I'll kill you both!"

"Coolidge! Move!"

"No, I won't!"

Then Shirley unleashed another blast of purple light. It struck him fast. He landed with a 'crack'.

_No, I can't let it end like this!_

He slowly got up and said, "Shirley, please stop this!"

"Never! I must kill you and that despicable woman! Stop resisting, or you'll only feel more pain! Now…die!"

She didn't hesitate before she hurled another purple blast at Chloe.

"Chloe!" The silver haired marine yelled as he ran over to her.

_I have to do something!_

He took a quick scan of where he was.

_Dammit! There's no time!_

Suddenly Senel picked her up, and jumped off the altar into the water below. He just barley avoided the blast.

"Aah!"

Chloe held on tightly to Senel by putting her arms around his neck.

"I know of a secret underwater chamber that Jay told me about, it's around here somewhere. And if I can find it, we'll be safe for a while."

"Underwater!"

"Don't worry, just hang on."

And he dove under. There was a current, so he didn't have to swim much. The current carried him close to where he was going. He found the passage he was looking for. Then the marine swam up, left, right, and left again through all the twists and turns. They finally surfaced in a little underground chamber.

"This is it."

The ceiling and walls were dancing with the pattern of the water moving.

"Thanks for saving me back there…"

"I couldn't lose you."

"This is all my fault. Everything is," she said.

"No. It's mine. I went after Shirley that night, and…I told her how I felt about her. I didn't want to do it…but I felt like I had to. It…broke her heart."

"Coolidge…"

"Somehow…we'll get through this. You and me. She blushed.

"What about the others? We can't just leave them behind." The female iron eren started.

"I know. We'll have to figure out a plan, and quick…"

"We can't even attack her, because the moment she sees us, she attacks."

"We'll have to think of some other way. Our eres won't have any effect on her now that she's Nerifes."

"I just hope it's not already too late…"

"As long as we're stuck down here, there's nothing we can do."

"As soon as we recover our strength, we should go to the Village of the Radiant, and see if everyone's okay. Then we could combine our power and…we might be able to free them," She suggested.

"That might work…that is, if they're really there and Shirley's not guarding them. But if they're not, we'll be on our own."

"There's no one else I'd rather have fighting by my side…"

Just then an earthquake, about 8.5 on the Richter scale, hit. It lasted for five seconds. Luckily the chamber stayed intact and didn't collapse.

"What was that?!" Chloe asked.

"An earthquake? But that was an unusually strong one for the Legacy. Shirley might be causing these."

"That could mean…" She started.

"Our friends are in danger! Come on, we have to go now!" He ran over to the water. He noticed Chloe didn't follow. He turned around.

"What are you waiting for?" He demanded.

"Wait. We can't just charge right into the village! They're expecting that. We'll be stepping right into their trap!"

"Then when? Will, Norma, Moses and Jay need our help **now**!"

"When they least expect it."

"But by that time, it might be too late!"

"Well if we go now, we'll just end up trapped with no way out! Just like they are!"

"Damn!"

He punched the wall.

"Do you think Shirley's planning to try another cataclysm?" He wondered.

"…I hope not."

That made her remember when they first learned about the original cataclysm that took place by the images they saw when she and the silver haired iron eren touched all the blue diamond lights in the fire, ice, thunder and earth monuments. The next thing she knew, she had slipped into unconsciousness.

Next chapter is going to be coming real soon! =X


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Tales of Legendia and its characters don't belong to me. Namco owns them all.Chapter 7

She woke up suddenly; who knows how long later, and almost forgot where she was.

Oh yea! I remember now…

The cave was a little different than before. It was now completely pitch dark.

"Coolidge?"

No answer.

"Coolidge?" A little louder.

Still no answer.

"If you're here, say something!"

All silence.

He's gone? Already? He shouldn't have gone alone…

She walked over to where she last remembered seeing him before she fell asleep. She felt around and touched something that felt like hair. Beautiful silver hair ever so slightly reflecting off the pattern of the water.

You're still here…I'm glad…

The day was well into the night.

"Coolidge, wake up!"

Chloe sat down beside him.

"Mmmm…uh? Chloe, is that you?"

"Mm."

"Huh? Whoa! It's dark."

"Yea. It looks like it's night now."

"Night…Now would be the perfect time to go to the village, right?" Senel asked.

"Yes. I just hope we're not too late…"

"Alright, let's go."

He went up to the water. The female iron eren took a deep breath and followed. She took hold of Senel's hand, and they jumped in. As cold as the water was in the daytime, it was 100 times colder now. And just as they expected, the sea was as dark as the night sky itself. She couldn't even see him while he was swimming against the current. The only thing that kept her from falling apart was barely feeling his hand holding on to hers. The temperature of the water was numbing their bodies, making difficult for him to swim. He finally made it to the top and surfaced. The night breeze hit them as they emerged.

"Coolidge…"

Chloe couldn't take the cold.

"Hang on. It's just a little further."

Forward the marine swam till he reached part of the Legacy that was right by the Altar Of The Sea. He carried her out. She seemed to be unconscious from the cold water. He took the duct to the Village Of The Ferines.

_What am I doing? I can't go in there now. If I run into Shirley…It'll be all over…_

Then, right when he was about to go back to town, he saw someone coming out of the village. A sense of panic ran through him. He started backing away when the person shouted, "Hey, it's you! Senel!"

But that voice was familiar. The person came within sight.

"Maurits! Have you seen my friends?"

"No. Has something happened to them?"

"Shirley turned against us and has taken most of my friends!"

"Hmmm. Yes, she did come here and say she was going to get rid of all the Orerines. I tried to talk her out of it, but she wouldn't listen. And now that Nerifes is with her, I couldn't stop her. She left yesterday and hasn't been back. I fear the power and means of destroying people she is able to use. If she's not stopped, there's no telling what she's capable of doing to other countries on the mainland as well as the Legacy."

"She's not here anymore?"

"No. The village is deserted as the Ferines fled for their lives. So all has been quiet here."

"Do you have any idea where she is now?"

"I'm afraid not. But it seems some of my people have seen her flying all over the Legacy recently as if she were looking for something. Please be careful!"

_She, no doubt, was searching for me._

"You have no idea at all where Shirley went off to?"

"Hmmm. Now that you mention it, I did overhear from some of the Ferines that she was spotted over by the Man-Eating Ruins."

"The Man-Eating Ruins?!"

"Yes. Although I cannot be for certain."

"I'll check it out anyway."

"Good luck. You are the only one who can stop her."

"Thanks."

Senel watched as the old chief went back into the little water village the Ferines called their home.

_The Man-Eating Ruins? I wonder what's going on there? I should check it out. Shirley might be there, and Will, Norma, Jay and Moses too. But I can't go with Chloe like this…I don't stand a chance on my own…_

He set her down beside him.

"Hey Chloe, wake up!"

She didn't move.

"Chloe, please, wake up!"

The next moment she opened her eyes.

"Coolidge?"

"Are you okay? Can you stand?"

"Yea, thanks! Isn't that the Village of the Radiant?"

He nodded.

"I ran into Maurits, and he said Shirley isn't here. She was spotted over by the Man-Eating Ruins."

"We have our destination. Let's go."

They stepped into the duct and then arrived right outside the Man-Eating Ruins. They looked around for any sign of Shirley, but no one was here.

"I guess we'll have to go inside" The swordswoman said.

"Don't let your guard down, even for a second!" The silver haired marine advised.

The inside appeared to be the same as when they had come here previously to help Norma in her search for the Everlight. They arrived at the chamber where the bed trap had fooled Norma. The stone statues of people were still standing. But something was different.

"I don't remember the floor being ice the last time we came here," Senel said.

"Something's up. Be careful."

They slid to the end of the chamber where the Whisper Crystal once resided. Chloe gasped.

"Look in here!"

Inside the place where Grune had slept was a frozen ice block sitting deep below the room. Within the block, four people were frozen. Their friends.

"We have to break the ice and free them!" He said.

Right before they unleashed their eres, Demon Fist and Demon Fang to break the ice, a voice echoed off the walls.

"There you are!"

The two iron erens turned around to see Shirley in mid-air a ways in front of them.

"Shirley!" The marine shouted.

"You slipped away from me at the Altar Of The Sea. You're not getting away this time!"

"Let our friends go!" He continued.

"Don't worry. You'll be joining them soon enough! Tidal Wave!"

A huge wave of water rushed in from nowhere beneath her, coming toward the iron erens. The entire chamber was now flooded.

"That should've taken care of them!" The Merines laughed.

Then Shirley gasped.

"What?!"

She saw Senel surfacing with Chloe hanging on to him.

"So that's how it's going to be, huh?! Then so be it!" The Merines screamed.

She formed a spherical Teriques barrier around the female knight and pulled her out of the water.

"You're coming with me to the Wings of Light, where I shall paint the newly created sea with your blood!"

"Let her go, Shirley!"

"And I'll make sure **you** won't be getting in the way!"

Shirley created an electric barrier in the water. Then she flew off through a hole in the ceiling.

Dammit! I have to follow her! I have to get out of here!

He swam over to the other side of the chamber when he remembered his friends were still frozen at the now far end of the room.

_I have to save them! But I can't. The barrier is blocking my way…I'll have to leave them._

The duct transported him back to the other part of the ruins. _I have to hurry out of here. I can't let Shirley cause another cataclysm! Or let Chloe be killed. I have to stop Shirley! Even if it means…fighting her. Maurits mentioned some Radiant saw Shirley flying all over the Legacy. I thought she was after me, but she was really after Chloe all along. I have to get to the Wings Of Light!_

Senel exited the Man-Eating Ruins and returned through the duct to Werites Beacon. Nothing seemed weird or unusual in the city. It was almost too normal. He went to the lighthouse and took the tram to the Wings Of Light using the Trail across the Heavens. He broke through the first area, then the next. When he was almost at the very end, he ran into Thyra.

"Stop right there, Senel!"

"Thyra, move!"

"That's as far as you go! The Cataclysm will soon take place! I'm not going to let you stop it this time! I won't!"

"I'm going to stop Shirley, so get out of my way! This is your last chance. Move!"

"Never! The Cataclysm will cleanse this world of land and you evil Orerines! You who killed my sister, and Walter, and so many other of our brethren! Have you no shame?!"

"No, that's not the answer! We need to find a way the Ferines and Orerines can live in peace."

"How can you say that?! You say one thing but act in the opposite way! You betrayed Shirley, Senel! She…she really loves you! But then you took her heart, and then broke it! All she ever wanted was to be with you! It was all she ever hoped for. And just when she thought she had it, you just throw her away for some other woman! What about those three years you spent with Shirley in the village? Orerines can never be with Ferines, we're too different. So in behalf of my sister and Shirley, I will kill you!"

"That's not true…In the village, I was…with Stella. And Shirley, she's a good friend, but that's all she'll ever be. She just thought we were more."

"It's too late for excuses, die!"

She punched Senel, but he blocked it. Then he knocked Thyra out. The path was clear now. A few more feet and there would be the end. The Throne room. He approached the center of the room and saw Shirley standing on the back platform. The glow of her blue Teriques started to disappear.

"I knew you would come, Senel…Too bad you're already too late to stop me!"

"No, I won't let you destroy everything!"

"As my first action, I will kill Chloe!"

A floating Teriques barrier levitated in front of her. Chloe lay inside.

"Chloe!"

"Now do you see, Senel? If I can't have you, no one can!"

"Shirley, you don't want to do this!"

"I thought you and I really knew each other, really trusted each other…really loved each other. But that was all my fantasy. I will break your heart like you broke mine!"

An arrow made from her Teriques formed in her hand.

"With this arrow, I will end her life!"

He ran over to her as fast as he could to stop her. Shirley, without hesitation, jabbed the arrow into Chloe.

Do I smell a cliffhanger? Chapter 8 should be here in a little while. =|


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Legendia or any of its characters.

Chapter 8

The Teriques shield surrounding Chloe broke, and she descended. Senel, just in time, caught her.

Chloe, no…

"That's what you get, Senel!"

"Shirley how could you?!"

"I will now commence the Cataclysm. So sit back and watch. There's nothing you can do now. I am Nerifes. I am beyond the perfect Merines! I am all powerful!"

The floor began flashing in blue light and the whole place was shaking.

Dammit! I failed…

"Now!"

But then, all of a sudden, everything stopped. The shaking stopped. The blue light shut off. It was so abrupt. The Merines gasped.

"No! Why won't it come out?! My power!"

The marine glanced up to see what was happening.

"Why?! Did I really lose everything that day?! Until next time, Senel!" The blond smirked as she flew out of the Wings of Light.

She's gone…she couldn't complete the cataclysm?

Everything grew as quiet as the quiet lands.

"Chloe, say something! Anything!"

He felt her wrist. There was no pulse.

"I can't lose a friend like this! This can't be happening!"

The silver haired eren felt a tear fall down his cheek.

"If I lose everyone else, Norma, Jay, Moses, Will, I can't lose you, Chloe! You're my best friend. You're always there for me…"

_You can't be dead! I'm sorry…I was too late…I can't believe I let this happen…_

He couldn't grasp the reality of the situation.

"It's all my fault…"

Senel made his way back to the tram, then inside the lighthouse again. There was an awkward feeling in the air. He couldn't think straight right now. So much had happened in such a short time. He found out where his friends were, Shirley almost caused another cataclysm, and Chloe…was out of his reach now. His mind was in ceaseless chaos of fear, and anger. It was almost a feeling of panic. Where is Shirley going to show up next? What's going to happen to the Ferines Village? The Mainland? It was all too much to think about for one person. As much as he didn't want to do it, he thought that first he should lay Chloe down in the graveyard. He stepped out of the lighthouse and into the cool Werites Beacon air. The marine scanned around, nearly anticipating the arrival of the Bantam Bouncers. But the fact is, he really didn't feel like talking to them, or listening to any crap anyone else had to say right now either. A few more minutes of silence assured him the Bouncers weren't around. He had just entered the graveyard when he heard something. A sound that didn't make any sense. Senel had to be dreaming. He gave himself a painful pinch on the arm.

Impossible…It can't be!

Senel gasped.

"Chloe! Y-you're alive? How?"

"W-what? I died? What happened?"

"Shirley wasn't able to unleash the Cataclysm and got away…I thought she killed you, but…"

"Mm. I felt a sharp pain right after I remember hearing your voice. I don't know what you did, but thank you…I know I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for your kindness."

"But, I didn't do anything…"

"You must've…Have you found out if the others are okay?"

"I haven't seen any of them since we were in the Man-Eating Ruins. We have to free them."

"I'll help you."

They did their victory high five. He got a grasp back on reality and noticed where they were. The graveyard. If his best friend hadn't woken up, she would've been just another memory. It was all too close. They walked through the city until they passed the bakery.

"Hey there brother! You should know our names well by now!" Boomed a familiar voice.

The Bantam Bouncers jumped down off the roof and landed right in front of them.

"Hey! Yo brother! We have some important information to tell you!" Curtis said.

"Really? What is it?" The marine asked.

"Shall we, Isabella?"

"Yes, Curtis."

"Ohhh, you are noooot going to believe thissssss, but your friends are safe, they're at the inn! They justttt arrivedddd a little while agoooooooo!" They sang.

The two iron erens almost wanted to die after hearing that, but it wasn't how they sang it that got their attention.

"What? They're here?" The swordswoman asked in disbelief.

"Are you serious?"

"I sure am, brother!"

"We first saw them entering the city earlier. They saw us, and explained that they were looking for you two. So they had us keep on the lookout if we happened to find you" Isabella explained.

"But how did they escape?" The silver haired eren questioned.

"We're glad we could help!" Curtis added.

"Now we're off to stop fighting and violence!"

They disappeared into the city. Senel and Chloe rushed into the inn. Norma was sitting on the bench, Moses beside her. Will and Jay were standing at the far side of the lobby, in discussion. Norma gasped.

"Senny! C! You made it, you're not dead!"

"Senel, Chloe! Yahoo!"

Will and Jay joined the group.

"I'm glad to see you two are alright" Will greeted.

"It seems we all made it back safely" Jay said.

"How did you escape? We both saw you frozen in the Man-Eating Ruins!" Senel inquired.

Norma, Moses, Jay and Will all exchanged glances.

"Well, to make it short, we"—Jay started.

"Forget the short version, let's tell the long story!" Norma interrupted.

"Yea, all the way from the beginning!" Moses encouraged.

"It's not like there's that much to tell, but alright."

"Okay. So first, as you know, Shirl trapped us in this barrier bubble at the altar. We tried to use eres to break out, but it was totally useless. Shirl had us. So meanwhile, we watched you guys dodge Shirl's attacks. I know you couldn't hear me, but I was cheering you on! The next moment, I couldn't believe what I saw! Senny, I can't believe you actually jumped from the tall altar into the sea! Talk about crazy! What was up with that?"

"Were you blind? If I hadn't jumped, Shirley would've killed us!"

"Well yea, but it was so cute how you saved C! That was really sweet of you, Senny!"

The silver haired marine blushed a little.

"I didn't have any other choice!"

"But you know C can't swim, yet"—

"Shut up Norma!" The female knight interrupted.

"Alright, alright, moving on. When you guys were gone, Shirl lifted us up and flew off. I don't know where she was going at first. She was flying around in circles all across the Legacy. Then a while later, she entered the Man-Eating Ruins. Somehow she opened up a secret door to an underground area. We were drug in, and then led out of the barrier. But the second we were free, she bound us in a paralyzing bind, and we couldn't move an inch. She sprinkled this weird blue dust and all of a sudden it got really cold. Then we noticed our feet were flash freezing. It was happening so quickly. It was only a matter of time till our whole body would be completely frozen. The last thing I remember thinking was, I've never been so cold in my life!"

"You said it Bubbles! That ice was so cold, I couldn't feel my hands no more!"

"Then what?" The marine asked.

"Shirl flew out and left us to freeze. And we did. The next minute, it's like I fell into a deep sleep. I saw a river and treasure on the other side. But I never quite got over to it. I woke up right before. When I woke up, I was in the place where all those stone statues are. Teach, Red, and JJ were there, and told me what happened. They said there was water that melted the ice on us. Shirl wasn't around, so we exited the ruins and came here. That's when we met up with the Bbs. We didn't know if you guys were still alive or not. So we told the Bbs to keep and eye out for you, and tell you that we're okay."

"I always believed you would make it back, Senel!" Moses shouted.

"Yea, well…there were a lot of close calls."

"What happened to you after you jumped?" Will wondered.

Senel shot a look at his best friend.

"Well, I found that underwater chamber that you mentioned to me, Jay. We came up with a plan to go to the Ferines Village, but when we got there, Shirley wasn't there. That's when we headed over to the Man-Eating Ruins. We found Shirley, and she nearly drowned us…"

"So that's why we thawed out!" Moses exclaimed.

"That does explain the water. It all makes sense now" Jay concluded.

"Then what?" Will said.

"I managed to escape after Shirley, and I followed her to the Wings of Light. She tried to cause the Cataclysm again, but somehow she couldn't complete it. Somehow she lost all her power at the last minute. Once again, Shirley escaped, and I came back here. The Bouncers came and told us you were here."

"The Cataclysm?!" Norma, Moses and Will all shouted together.

"I can't believe Shirl would try that again! Has she totally lost it?!"

"It's a good thing she wasn't able to do it" Will replied.

"Do you happen to know where Shirley went?" Jay asked.

Senel shook his head.

"Hmmm…now would be a good time to start planning our next move" The ninja went on.

"Yea, we need to find Shirl and convince her to stop this madness! But we don't even have any leads."

"Jay, can you find Shirley?" The silver haired eren said.

"I'll start gathering information on this matter and research it tonight. I'll see what I can do."

"I'll join you" Will offered.

Will and Jay left the inn.

"Well, now that they're gone, it's time for a party! What do you say guys?" Norma prompted.

"I couldn't agree any more!" Moses replied.

"Okay" Senel and Chloe answered.

"Alright, awesome! Follow me to the Fountain!"

"So what's this party for?" The red haired bandit wondered.

"A celebration of…ah, who cares? It's a party, right?"

The treasure hunter ran out.

"Hey, wait for me!"

The three iron erens were right after her.

"Well now what are we gonna do, Bubbles? It's too dark to throw a party."

"I meant we're just gonna talk! How stupid can you be, Red?"

"Hey!"

"Anyway, all I want to know is…what's going on with you two, Senny and C?"

"What do you mean?" Chloe said.

"Well, you've been together all this time, alone. I was wondering if something happened!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about!" The marine and the knight said in perfect unison.

After a minute of silence, Norma said, "Alright, fine. I believe you. There's just one other thing I want to do. Red, let's play that mimic game!"

"Okay, I'm up for that!"

"Mimic game?" Senel asked.

"All it is is a game where one team mimics what the leader team does. And we're playing for the privilege of dunking the losers into the Fallingwater Lake!" The bandit explained.

"You're on, Moses! You can't beat me!"

"No, Senny. We play on teams, and I pick Red to be on my team. It's me and Red against you and C!"

"You up for it Senel? Or are you too afraid you're gonna lose?" The red haired eren taunted.

"We'll have five acts you have to imitate. If you can, you win, and get the pleasure of dunking us in. But if you can't, we get to dunk you guys in! What do you say?" Norma went on.

"You're on! Come on Chloe, how hard could it be?"

The swordswoman nodded. Norma winked at Moses.

"Okay, here we go!"

Moses lifted up Norma and she spread her hands out above her, like a cheerleader, and made a peace sign with her hand.

"That was act one!"

Senel lifted up the female knight and she did exactly what Norma did.

"So far so good!" Norma chirped.

"We're not going to lose!"

"Here's the next one!" The bandit said.

Norma and Moses dangled their arm like it was a hinge. The knight and marine copied.

"Here comes number three!"

They put their hands up two times fast, once to the right, and once to the left. Once again, Senel and Chloe copied.

"This is number four!"

Moses stepped up first, and then Norma came. He went two steps back next, followed by his teammate. The silver haired and black haired erens shot each other a weird look. They copied them for the fourth time.

"Not bad. You ready for the last one?" The bandit piped.

"If you win this last one, you guys get to dunk us!"

"With all your cheesy acts, you must get dunked all the time!" Senel said.

"Are you ready Senny, C?"

"Yea."

The next second, Moses went up to Norma and kissed her.

"Your turn!" The treasure hunter said.

Senel looked at his best friend with a worried look.

"What's the matter Senel? Can't do it? If you don't do it, then we get to throw you in the lake! Don't forget that!"

The silver haired marine grabbed Chloe's hand and nodded to her. She embraced him in a hug and whispered in his ear, "I can't do this, Coolidge! I want to go home."

Before she had time to react, Senel kissed her. The taste of his lips on hers was unbelievable.

So this is why I never got too close to him…

She hated it as much as she secretly loved it.

No, this can't go on! He's not letting up! I have to stop this, or…

After a couple seconds, she broke away from him and ran away from them as fast as she could.

"Oh my god! I can't believe it! But I've seen it now, Senny! I saw you kiss C! Ha! I knew there was something between you two!"

"Wow. I can't believe it's actually true!" The bandit said.

"Yea, Senny's got some guts! Didn't they look cute together?"

Before her teammate could answer, the marine punched him out.

"Uh…hahaha! Senny don't look so angry! It was only a test! I mean a game! Ahhh! Please don't hurt me!"

"Norma, I can't believe you would pull something like this! You've gone too far! Now go home before I decide to seriously hurt you!"

"Red, Red! Get your lazy ass up, dammit!"

Moses stood up slowly, in pain.

"I'm with you Bubbles! Let's get out of here!"

And they ran off.

_I can't believe them! How could I? I forced her into that just so I wouldn't lose. I have to talk to her. No doubt…she hates me now._

He approached the hospital door and walked inside.

Dum dum dum dah! Chapter 9 is swinging in soon! So don't forget to review please! =) =)


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Namco owns Tales of Legendia and all of the characters within Tales of Legendia. Not I.

Chapter 9

It was empty in the lobby except for the receptionist standing behind the counter. Senel went to the stairs and climbed to the top. He cautiously walked up to the door and softly knocked. When nothing happened, he whispered, "It's me Senel…"

No response.

_She's either asleep or doesn't want to talk to me. I wouldn't want to talk to me now either. The only thing I can do is go home, and get some rest._

The walk to his house was short, but also dark and spooky. He entered and crawled into bed, and left the real world temporarily.

"Senel, it's morning! Time to wake up!"

"Just a little longer…"

"Senel, get your butt up out of this bed right now!"

The marine slightly opened his eyes and vaguely saw who rudely woke him up.

"Alright, alright, I'm up…"

He yawned and stood up. Face to face with his red haired friend.

"Will wanted me to get you. He said Jay and him want us to hear what they found out about Shirley. Everyone's already there."

As they went to Will's, the silver haired eren noticed the weather on the way. Unlike the past couple days, it was nice and sunny. They neared Will's house and went in. Harriet greeted them when they stepped through the second door.

"Bread?"

"No thanks!"

"Hell! I ain't eatin' that, little girl!" The bandit shouted.

Harriet got an angry look on her face.

"Uh…haha! I meant not today. He he…"

She turned around and stomped upstairs.

"You're here…now I will begin the meeting." Jay announced.

Senel looked around to see everyone standing around the table like they always did.

"After researching and concluding on the matters present, I have now discovered Shirley's current location." The ninja continued.

"It seems Shirley is now somewhere in the Ruins of Frozen Light. We don't know what her objective is at this point." Will explained.

"Well, all we need now is a plan! I say we charge in there and convince Shirl to stop like we did a long while back."

"But what if she won't listen? What if we can't convince her this time?" The black haired boy said.

"Then we'll…we'll…" Moses trailed off.

"We'll have to fight her." The silver haired eren declared.

"Fight Shirl?!"

"Senel, are you serious about this?" The bandit asked.

"Do you think I'd joke about something like that?!"

"Then it's settled. We should probably get going to the Ruins of Frozen Light now." The male crystal eren suggested.

The marine didn't move when the others did. He let them go ahead. Then he saw Chloe hadn't either.

"Coolidge, about yesterday…"

"I shouldn't have done that. I let Moses and Norma get to me. I'm so sorry."

"It's alright. I'm not angry at you."

"Wait, you're not? You don't hate me?"

"Of course not. I couldn't…"

She smiled and warmly extended her open hand to him. He placed his hand on hers.

"Thanks, Chloe."

Before he had time to react, she twisted his hand and threw him to the floor.

"Ow! So I guess you are still angry…"

"Let's go," she said with a genuine smile.

They walked outside.

"There you are Senny and C! Now let's get a move on!"

Norma hummed all the way to the duct. They transported themselves to the Ruins of Frozen Light. Since this place is deserted now, it was easy for them to take the front entrance. They battled their way through the ruins' turns and passageways.

"This is that purple room, remember? The main control chamber is just ahead. We don't know what will happen. Proceed with caution" Jay warned.

Everyone nodded in agreement. The automatic door opened up and they entered the room with a broken red sphere at the far end. A long time ago it held Stella, unconscious for three years.

"Hey! Shirl's not"—

But before she could finish her sentence, they were blown back by a blast of inhuman energy.

"What the hell?!" Moses shouted.

"Shirley!" The marine said.

"Senel, Will, Norma, Jay, Moses, Chloe…your time is now, the time to perish!" Shirley cried.

She glowed with the light of her blue Teriques. Then the escape tunnel to the Forest of No Return opened up, revealing a toxic liquid miasma filled hole.

"Shirl, can't we talk about this?!"

"We're not going to fight you unless we have to!" The bandit declared.

The Merines simply stared at them.

"Tractor Beam!"

"Ugh!"

The silver haired marine hit the floor with a thud.

"Coolidge!"

"Alright, that's it! We gave you a chance to talk to us, but if you won't listen, then we're goin' to take you out!" The red haired eren exclaimed.

"Will, Norma, back us up!" The ninja commanded.

Moses and Jay ran ahead to attack Shirley.

"Hey Senny, C, get up there and help JJ and Red! What are you waiting for, an invitation?"

"Indignation!"

"Coolidge, we have to help them!"

He nodded. They took off running over to where the ninja and the bandit were. Moses threw his spear, and then blocked one of the blond girl's attacks. Jay tried to catch her with his knife, but she evaded it. Then she struck him with her feather quill.

"Rouge Hunt!"

His attack hit the Merines but didn't seem to do much damage. The ninja followed up with Silent Pyre. It was a direct hit. Shirley staggered backward.

"Now's our chance!" Chloe said.

Senel and Chloe ran forward, ready to attack. Just as they were about to use Demon Fist and Demon Fang, the marine stopped. He looked down and said, "I…can't."

"Coolidge?"

"Senny why did you stop?"

Thoughts of Stella flooded the silver haired eren's mind. All his feelings and memories of her came back as well. Stella in the village. He was right there with her…and she asked him for the Rite of Feriyen. Stella, the woman he always wanted to be with…

_She's standing right in front of me._

"You still love me, right Senel?" Stella said in his head.

_Stella…I'm coming!_

Then Senel ran up to Shirley, wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her. The female knight just about fainted.

_Coolidge…how could you break my heart like that? Why did you lie to me?_

She was a nanothread away from crying. The one thing she never wanted to see between them, happened. He took her heart and shattered it into a billion tiny shards. Not one of them could think of a word to say.

_What? You…do love me? Oh Senel! You've made me so happy._

When the marine pulled away from the Merines, he saw a smile on her face.

"Senel…" Shirley's voice trailed off.

He was smiling at her too.

"Let's go" The blond whispered to him.

She walked toward the back of the room and pushed a button on the wall. The room started to flash in red light, and a beeping noise filled the silence. Norma and Moses gasped.

"What the?!"

"A self destruct mechanism! She's planning to blow up the ruins! We have to get out of here quick!" Will concluded.

Jay ran over to the orange clad man.

"How much time do we have?"

"I can't say for sure. It could be a minute, five, or even ten. But if we want to make it out alive, we had better leave now!" The male crystal eren replied.

"Alright."

"Moses, Senel, Chloe, Norma, come on!"

"You don't have to shout Teach! I'm right here!"

The female iron eren started to run toward the entrance of the room, right behind Moses, when Shirley blasted her with one of her Teriques shots. It sent her flying toward the miasma pit. She started to fall inside the toxic chasm. Quickly she grabbed a hold of the slippery edges of the floor.

"Oh no! C!"

I can't hold on much longer…

She looked behind her down below, where the miasma was bubbling up its own purple acid. Her hands started to slip, and it would only be mere seconds till she fell.

_Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to die like this. If Senel truly is in love with Shirley, then…it wouldn't make much of a difference if I wasn't here anymore…_

Just at that moment her hands lost their grip on the edge. Just in time someone grabbed her hand. It wasn't what she was expecting. She looked up and gasped.

"It's all right, I've got you."

Those words comforted her. Then Senel saw Shirley running over to him. He didn't know what she was going to do, but as soon as she stopped running, she lost her balance and started to fall.

"Sen—ahhh!"

With his other hand he quickly caught the blond girl's hand. A piece of debris fell from the ceiling. Fire was now burning over at the far left corner of the room.

"Ugh…" The marine mumbled, feeling the weight he was holding.

_There's no way I can pull both of them up by myself. I'm too weak right now. That eres Shirley got me with really drained all my strength. I'm not so sure how long I can even keep holding them._

The entrance already gathered Will, Jay, Moses and Norma.

"Hey Senny, it's time to go! What's the hold up? Don't you see this place is falling apart faster than you can say taco?!"

"I could go for a taco right now!" The red haired bandit chimed.

"Red!"

"This isn't the time you two!" The natural historian scolded while giving them each a bonk on the head.

"Guys, I can't pull them both up. I…don't have the strength right now. I don't even know how long I can keep hold of them! I need your help!"

"Senel!" Shirley cried.

"Alright, we're coming! Just hold on!" The bandit shouted.

The four erens ran across the room to where Senel was. But halfway there a huge piece of flaming debris crashed down from above, blocking their way. The flames that spread out from it engulfed the only paths that they could use to reach their friend.

"Oh no! We're trapped!" The treasure hunter declared.

"Dammit! You're right, Bubbles!"

"There's no way we can cross this…" Jay stated.

"Unfortunately…we'll have to leave them," Will seriously stated.

"Are you serious?!" The yellow clad girl asked.

"Bubbles, there's no way to get across! Can't you see that? Now come on!"

The bandit ran after Jay and Will. The treasure hunter looked through the fire, trying to spot Senel. After a couple seconds she gave up, and said, "Well Senny, this all comes down to you now. I hope"—

She stopped as another large chunk of debris landed right in front of her.

"Ahh! Gotta go, Senny!"

She sped away from the flames and disappeared behind the door.

_Damn! Now what am I going to do?! There's no way in hell I'll be able to save them both! I can only pull one of them up. Not to mention the exit is blocked! Could this get any worse?! And I have to hurry, or I won't be able to save either of them. _

Chloe and Shirley both realized how urgent the situation was. The swordswoman knew what Senel was talking about when he said that he couldn't pull them both up. It meant either Shirley or herself was about to be dropped into the poisonous miasma below, and meet a painful death.

_It's not going to be me he chooses to save. Sure, I'm his friend, but Shirley means the world to him. I can never compete with her…and besides, he just kissed her. That's proof enough._

The female knight lowered her head and prepared herself for the silver haired eren letting go of ther hand, her death. Shirley had a worried look on her face.

"Senel…" The Merines smiled a tiny smile up at him.

He smiled back.

_This is it. I have to choose. Stella, you're right here. How can I say no to you? You were captured and I wasn't there to protect you…I'm sorry, but now we can be together. I…I still love you Stella. Wait, you're already dead. You don't exist anymore. That's not Stella. That's Shirley._

He heard another piece of debris fall and hit the floor.

_If I choose to save one of my friends, now's the time. Either way…I'll still be responsible for one of their deaths. There's no way to avoid it. I'll just have to live with it, and move on._

He looked at both girls once again. With a quick let go of the hand holding his right hand, half the weight was gone in a second.

Haha, you know, I could go for a taco from taco hell right now too! =) Thanks for reading! Chapter 10 will be here soon! Stay tuned!


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: Namco owns the game Tales of Legendia and all of its characters.

Chapter 10

The girl didn't even scream as she fell down and sank below the toxic liquid. Senel closed his eyes as soon as he let go of her. When he opened his eyes the girl that had fallen was already gone. Now all he had to do was pull his remaining friend to safety, and somehow, possibly make it out before they were crushed or burned. He glanced down at the girl still clutching his left hand. She was staring at the miasma below. Her gaze then met his, and he noticed tears on the rims of her eyes. He reached out his free hand to her. She took it, and the marine lifted her out of the pit. She turned to look at the series of fire blazes covering more than half the room. Then she turned to look at him, her face red from the tears.

"W-why did you do that? I thought…you chose Shirley. Isn't that why you kissed her?"

"No. I thought for sure she was Stella for a moment. It was my fault for thinking that. But I realize she's gone and not coming back. I lost a friend that day, and I'm not going to lose another."

The silver haired eren put his arms around his friend and held her tightly against him.

"You're very important to me, Chloe. More than you know."

She lost her stability and crumbled into him.

"I won't let this be the end…Follow me!" Senel whispered.

"Phoenix Strike!"

He cleared the fire at that moment. But it wouldn't be long until the fire spread back again. She ran through the clear path before it returned. They exited the room through the automatic door. Luckily this part of the ruins hadn't completely been destroyed yet, so dashing around all the corners and turns wasn't difficult. The erens now arrived at the fork, where the fire had spread wildly in all directions. There was no sign of Will, Norma, Moses or Jay.

"This way!" He pointed to the path ahead.

Senel found a safe spot in the fire. He rolled threw and looked back, expecting to see his friend right behind. The sun was causing him to see his shadow beside himself. He did a one-eighty, and sure enough, there was the sun. The path was all clear of fire and monsters. He had made it out. He turned back to the fire. The swordswoman was nowhere in sight.

"Chloe?!"

Just then he heard a thundering BOOM! Before he gave it much thought, he dashed back through the fire. When he quickly scanned the area, he didn't see the female iron eren. All he saw was an enormous flaming chunk of the ceiling occupying the floor. Right next to it laid a purple sword with white flashes.

_That's…Chloe's sword!_

The silver haired eren sprinted over to the huge piece of glass and threw it aside. Underneath it was nothing. He picked up her sword to discover it was covered in fresh blood.

"Over here, Coolidge!"

He walked toward the voice and found his friend and a dead monster.

"A monster stopped me, so I had to take it out."

"Here." He handed her back her sword.

"Sorry to hold you up. Let's get out of here!"

They ran up to the fire blocking the front entrance. The marine searched for the tiny space he crawled through before.

"We're blocked! We have to find another way!"

He looked in the direction of the exit with the red star on it, then over to the doorway of the waterway.

"We'll have to take a different exit. This way!"

The female knight was right after him. Once a few inches from the water, she started to panic.

"Don't tell me we have to swim! Isn't there **any** other way?!"

"No, this is our only way out!"

She hesitated, the fire burning ever closer to them.

"Go!" He shouted.

She stared at him with a look of fear. Then a fiery piece of the ceiling broke off directly above them. He gasped and pushed Chloe into the water just as the big chunk of glass crashed to the ground. She opened her eyes to water all around her. This was it. She was sinking to the bottom of this endless tunnel of water. The light filtering down from above was growing dim.

Chloe had never given much thought about how she would die, but at that moment she thought about it more than ever. As her world darkened around her, all she could hope for was her death to be quick and painless. Then, as if things couldn't get any worse, a shadow appeared far above her and seemed to be descending in her direction.

_Is that what I think it is? It looks like a piece of the ceiling…but it's too blurry to see. I'll know when it gets closer. At this rate…it's going to crush me in just a matter of seconds. Maybe this is the best thing I could've hoped for to die quickly…_

In no time the shadow descended close enough to her that she could see what it was. It came over her and took hold of her as strong arms wrapped around her.

Coolidge…

He gave her a quick smile and carried her up to the surface. She let her lungs fill up with air after they felt like they were about to burst. Then before she could react, he pressed his lips against hers. As soon as he did, the water began to glow a bright light.

"The water! It's glowing! What's going on?"

"T-the Rite of Feryien. I've told you about it before, right?"

"Mm. I remember now…"

The incandescent water was now starting to fade.

"I thought I was going to die for a second." She blushed.

A few more seconds of silence passed.

"Let's go."

"Coolidge!"

"Hang on and you'll be fine."

It seemed like forever until they resurfaced in the basement of the Great Hollow. They walked up to the main floor of the dungeon till they reached the very top. From there the duct transported them to Werites Beacon. The first thing the two erens saw were the lights of the night.

"I wonder if the others made it out okay?" Chloe said.

"They probably already deemed us dead as soon as they got back here. Let's head over to Will's for a minute."

When they rounded the corner, they walked up to the natural historian's house and opened the door. The light was on, and talking was going on behind the next door. Right when Senel opened the second door, the talking came to an abrupt halt. Four pairs of eyes were fixed on their arrival. A group gasp sounded.

"S-Senny, where's Shirl?"

"She died obviously. Do you really need for him to say that for you to figure it out?"

"Jeez JJ, I was just asking!"

"Wow, Senel. I can't believe you chose Chloe over Shirley. I thought you and her…" Moses trailed off.

"It doesn't surprise me at all. I had a feeling things would turn out this way" Will said.

"Will?" The marine questioned.

"You made it back. That's all that matters right now."

The silver haired eren sighed.

"Oh yea! I almost forgot to tell you guys. I've decided to finish up my last couple years of school on the mainland, and I'm leaving on the boat tomorrow" Norma announced.

"So soon?" The female iron eren asked.

"Yea, it's time. Hey, let's all meet up at Port-on-Rage tomorrow morning to say our goodbyes and stuff, okay?"

They all agreed. Then they all strolled back to their rooms, where each could rest and take time to think about all that had happened today, and how their lives could be impacted tomorrow. In the morning, Senel made his way out of the city, past the drawbridge, to find he was the last one to arrive at Port-on-Rage.

"Glad you could finally make it, Senel!" The bandit greeted.

"Sorry I'm late. So you're going back to school, Norma?"

"Yea. Well you see…master paid a lot of money for me to attend this really nice, ritzy academy on the mainland that I would've never been able to pay for. I only went a year before I came here to search for the Everlight, and I promised master before he died that I would finish. So today I'm going to go back."

"I see."

"But I'll come to visit too! Like on winter vacation and spring break I'll come see you guys here!"

"I've decided to board the ship today too," the red haired eren declared.

"Where are you going, Moses?" The male crystal eren inquired.

"I'm goin' to see how things are back home and see if my village is still standin' alright. I got lots of stuff to tell my folks back home, like how I got sacred eres. But don't worry, I will never forget about my family here. So y'all don't go worryin' 'bout me or nothin'! And Jay…you'll always be my little brother."

"Would you stop saying that!" The shy ninja turned red in embarrassment.

"Hurry up Red! They're starting to board!"

"Right behind you, Bubbles!"

The remaining four watched as the treasure hunter and the bandit ran onto the ship.

"What about you Jay? Are you leaving?" The marine asked.

"There's really no reason for me to visit the mainland right now. And who would take care of the Oresoren? They need me."

"Will?"

"Not this time. I would like to visit the main research institute in Rexalia, but I need to spend more time with Harriet right now."

"Chloe?"

She shook her head.

"So you're staying? I thought you were going back to Gadoria."

"Not necessarily."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm staying…with you. Will you stay with me…till the end?"

Senel looked straight at her.

"No. Till forever."

The next thing Chloe knew, she was being held tight in Senel's embrace. In that moment on, the rain never seemed to end.

The End!

Awwwz! What a cute ending, right? Review and tell me if you liked it or not!


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